a woman under the influence

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A WOMAN UNDER THE INFLUENCE(1974, d. John Cassavetes)Starring Gena Rowlands, Peter Falk

NARRATIVE DESCRIPTION:

Nick
Longhetti (Peter Falk) is a construction crew chief trying to keep his
work and family life together. His beautiful wife, Mabel (Gena Rowlands)
is eccentric and seems to be slowly disintegrating, unable to cope with
her role of wife and mother. Though Nick and Mabel are deeply in love,
neither are able to communicate or meet the needs of the other. After a
series of disturbing events, friends and family begin to question
Mabel’s mental health. Nick’s mother pressures him to have Mabel
committed to an institution and he reluctantly agrees. The resulting
domestic turmoil tears the couple and their family apart.

Photo courtesy: Faces Distribution and the Criterion Collection

Cassavetes’ searing look at a woman beset by mental illness reflected
the feminist movement with its observations of claustrophobic
domesticity.

Long takes and close-ups heighten the emotional
impact of Mabel’s increasingly bizarre behavior and its effect on her
marriage and family. Gena Rowlands' masterful performance remains one of
the most powerful ever filmed. A key movie of the early 1970s, the film
stands today as one of the foremost examples of Cassavetes’ unsparing
realism. The seeds of today’s family dramas, and indeed, of the entire
contemporary independent film movement, can be found here and in
Cassavetes’ other works.

Photo courtesy: Faces Distribution and the Criterion Collection

Cassavetes' surviving original magnetic soundtrack master mix was
utilized by Audio Mechanics as the primary sound source for a digital
restoration. The cleaned-up digital file was used as the source to
create a new preservation 35mm magnetic fullcoat master and soundtrack
negative. This was used in conjunction with the 35mm recombined picture
internegative to produce new release prints.